The Tiles and Tribulations of All’s Fair in Love and Mahjong – Review. I watched the premiere of ‘All’s Fair in Love and Mahjong’ on Hallmark Channel, and while I went into it a little skeptical, I walked away pleasantly happy. And in part, this became one of the most personal movies for me. Take your dream and make it a reality. Take your hobby and make it a job.
The Hallmark Channel synopsis is Ronni (Fiona Gubelmann), a beloved school nurse and devoted mom who hosts a longstanding mahjong game with her dear friends, Shelley (Yan-Kay Crystal Lowe), Carly (Tamera Mowry-Housley), and Melissa (Melissa Peterman). When Ronni becomes an empty nester, her whole world tilts — her daughter leaves for college, her hours are cut, and her ex insists it’s time to sell the home she’s poured her heart into. But a chance moment at a school fundraiser reveals her unexpected gift for teaching mahjong — and sparks a connection with Ben (Paul Campbell), a charming contractor whose family needs a little healing of its own. As Ronni brings community after community together through the game she loves, she discovers that sometimes the hand you are dealt changes everything. With her future in the balance, Ronni must learn to bet on herself… and maybe on love, too.
I will be the first to admit, I wasn’t excited about this movie. Having heard of Mahjong but never being exposed to it, I couldn’t relate. For all I knew, mahjong could be any game. I know different now. But more than the game, I learned that not only is the community around you invaluable, but also to take a chance on yourself.
Ronni is at a crossroads in her life. Her only child is off to college, and her ex-husband didn’t even wait til the child was out of the driveway to bring up selling the family home. She learns that her job as a school nurse is being cut to part-time. Ronni must find a way to get a loan to buy her ex out and keep her house before it’s too late. But what Ronni does have is her three best friends with whom she plays mahjong every week. She has that support system that we all crave.
Ronni teaches mahjong at a school fundraiser, where she meets Ben and his mom. Ben offers to help fix her house for the sale if she would go to his mom’s senior home to teach mahjong and help her make some friends. Through the school event and the seniors, a buzz starts around Ronni and her ability to teach the game. Through word of mouth, a business is born. So Ronni becomes “The Marvelous Mrs. Mahj.”
What Ronni has is three best friends who are willing to be there and encourage her at every turn. At karaoke night, Carly sang the Natasha Bedingfield anthem, “Unwritten.” Perfection! If you don’t understand this, go look up the lyrics. This is the most encouraging song they could have sung to Ronni. There’s Ben, who is there to fix it all. He’s charming and encouraging.
The exchange in the movie that resonated with me the most was between Mike, the ex-husband, and Ronni. He tells her, “You can’t wake up one day and decide to turn your hobby into your job.” Ronni defiantly responds, “Watch me.” My husband and I took this hobby of covering Disney, popcorn buckets, and Hallmark and turned it into a successful business. You can take your dreams and live them. We had a lot of people tell us you can’t, or it won’t work. Our response was always, “Watch us.”
The storyline and problems seemed a little more grown-up than we are used to seeing, and I am ok with that. We have older stories. Empty nests and second acts. As a woman of a certain age, I appreciate that. I think having a balance of younger stories with older stories is necessary to keep a broad range of viewers.
Fiona Gubelmann plays Ronni, and you see the grit and determination, but you also see the fear and uncertainty. We saw soft and sweet and a spine of steel. She played it perfectly. Paul Campbell just knows how to be supportive and the good guy. I’m not sure I’d ever like to see him be the just awful bad guy. They had an easy chemistry between them. They may have made me cry at the end. He saved Ronni’s daughter’s height chart before he painted the wall. He presented it to her in a wood shadow box-type frame. Tears. Thanks, Ben!
The supporting cast of Melissa Peterman, Tamera Mowry-Housley, and Yan-Kay Crystal Lowe is exactly what you want from your best girlfriends. They made me wish I had that girl group to lean on. Tamera Mowry-Housley singing “Unwritten” proves again that she has talent that keeps us watching. I would watch Melissa Peterman do anything. She is just one of the funniest human beings ever. I want more of her. And Yan-Kay Crystal Lowe, who is going through a cancer journey that she is taking us all on with her on Instagram, shone as she always does. She seemed to be closest to Fiona in their scenes. The friendship between the four women seemed genuine.
Nina Weinman wrote the movie. She has written many, many Hallmark movies over the years, most notably for me are ‘Catch Me if You Claus’ and ‘The Perfect Setting.’ Jessica Harmon served as director for the movie. She also just directed the Tyler Hynes hit movie, ‘I’ll Be Seeing You.’
The story is inspired by the real Ronni Rice and how she became the Marvelous Mrs. Mahj. You can go to her website and get lessons. Joel S. Rice, Ronni’s husband, serves as Executive Producer for the film.
My take is that this is a 4 out of 5 popcorn bucket movie. I related to certain parts and craved the friendship of other parts. My kids haven’t left home yet, but they are all adults now. I understand moving into the second act. This may not be a movie for everyone. It may not make you want to go play mahjong. But it’s worth watching. It’s feel good for a reason.
The Tiles and Tribulations of All’s Fair in Love and Mahjong – Review
